Section 3. Astronomical Activities

- the Space Observers Hong Kong, established in 1979.

- the Astronomical Workshop, established in 1994.

Besides above, there are two subsidized organizations that promote popular astronomy:

established by the Hong Kong Government in 1980, opened to all citizens.

established by Sik Sik Yuen in 1995, opened to schools and communities only.

The followings are the activity highlights of these organizations and some important personal works in chronological order.^{(4) (8)}

1970

• 
  T
  he Hong Kong Amateur Astronomers’ Union was established but
  

Information” and dispatched them free to members and astronomy

clubs in secondary schools.

1971

• 
  Many amateur observed Mars in opposition.
  

• 
  A series of Mars images was captured by Joseph Liu in Hong Kong using his 16.5cm (6.5”) f/10 reflecting telescope. The images showed a large ice cap but diminishing in size at the south pole of the planet.
  

• 
  Large scale observation of total lunar eclipse.
  
• 
  Joseph Liu built the first private observatory in Sheung
  

32cm (12.5”) Newtonian-Cassegrain reflector.

• 
  The Sky Observers’ Association (SOA) was
  

astronomy course of the University of Hong Kong.^(6b)

• 
  The Hong Kong Polytechnic (now Hong Kong
  

• 
  Observed Giacobini meteor shower.
  
• 
  The sunspot data since 1970 was studied by the Hong Kong Amateur Astronomers’
  

of sunspots passed the sun’s central meridian. The finding was submitted to the Purple

• 
  The Yuen Long site of the Hong Kong Amateur Astronomers’ Union was equipped with
  

• 
  The University of Hong Kong offered undergraduate courses in astrophysics.
  
• 
  The SOA introduced monthly stargazing camps and published its journal
  

• 
  An observation report was prepared jointly by 18 secondary schools
  

• 
  Joseph Liu served as an advisor to plan the building of the Hong Kong Space Museum.
  

• 
  The Chinese University of Hong Kong established its astronomy club.
  

• 
  The Hong Kong Amateur Astronomers’ Union was renamed “Hong Kong Amateur Astronomical Society (AAS) and registered formally the same year.
  

• 
  The AAS and SOA jointly published the stencil-printed ”Hong Kong Astronomical
  

1981 due to reforms of policy. Thirty-four issues were distributed in 5 years time.

• 
  The AAS organized the first “Astronomical Photographic
  

10,000 people visited this exhibition.

• 
  Observed Nova Cygni (V1500 Cygni).
  

1976

• 
  The AAS and the Urban Council jointly
  

• 
  Observed Comet West (C/1975 V1).
  
• 
  The AAS and the SOA jointly conducted a
  

• 
  The AAS hosted the “Astronomy Mailbox” in the
  

• 
  The AAS organized the first Hong Kong Astronomical Convention.
  
• 
  The AAS hosted monthly a page about astronomy in the local press Wah Kui Yat Poa.
  

• 
  The AAS and the Urban Council jointly organized two exhibitions: the “Astronomical Essay Competition and Exhibition” and the “Astrophotographic Competition and Exhibition” in the City Hall, each attracting 40,000 visitors.
  
• 
  The AAS published the ”Hong Kong Astronomical Journal” in offset-printing instead of stencil-printing.
  
• 
  The SOA published “Seasonal Star Chart” and the booklet “Lunar Eclipses”.
  

• 
  The AAS published the “Lunar Eclipse Handbook”
  

• 
  The AAS published a set of star charts up to 5^th magnitude for its members.
  

• 
  The AAS organized “Astronomy Study Camp” for leaders of various local secondary schools and community centres to share their experience in managing astronomical groups.
  
• 
  The AAS was invited as the advisor in Bradbury Camp of the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong. In 1985, the Camp installed a Celestron 28cm (11”) Schmidt-Cassegrain and a
  

Cassegrain.

• 
  The Space Observers Hong Kong was established by the readers of the local magazine World of Science and Technology. ^(6c)
  
• 
  The SOA (Sky Observers’ Association) organized “Astronomy Lecture Series” with the Urban Council for the first time.
  

1980

• 
  The Hong Kong Space Museum (HKSM) was opened to the public. It included a theatre, an exhibition hall and a planetarium that housed the first OMNIMAX film projector in the eastern hemisphere. Since then the HKSM has become the most important local educational institution for popularizing astronomy.^(6e)
  
• 
  The AAS and SOA members made their first total solar eclipse expedition to Yunnan, China.
  
• 
  The AAS rented a flat in the Western District which served the dual-role as office and observing station in the urban area.
  
• 
  The New Asia College Observatory was completed and equipped
  

• 
  The SOA built a 30cm (12”) reflecting telescope.
  
• 
  The SOA organized the first “Astronomical Observation Award Scheme” to promote the atmosphere of conducting astronomical research.
  
• 
  The HKSM’s “Solarscope” and the “Solar Hall” were opened.
  

• 
  The Astronomy Club of the University of Hong Kong
  

Almanac”. Its publication was later taken over by the

• 
  The HKSM published its first astro-calendar.
  
• 
  The AAS established the Occultation Timing Section, promoting a research activity suitable for urban observers. The Section also dispatched information on impending occultation events of the Moon, satellites of Jupiter and asteroids.
  

• 
  The AAS hosted the “1982 Hong Kong Astronomical Convention”.
  

• 
  The SOA started to release astronomical information to the local press.
  

1983

• 
  The AAS and Radio Hong Kong cooperated to present a
  

A total of 34 sessions were presented.

• 
  The HKSM installed a multi-language system (Cantonese, Mandarin, English and Japanese) for its Space Theatre programme.
  
• 
  Members of the AAS observed total solar eclipse in Indonesia.
  

1984

• 
  The AAS published a series of exercises for astronomical observation. Trainees were certificate-awarded after satisfactory completion of these exercises.
  

1985

• 
  A SOA member imaged Comet Halley. He was the first amateur in China, including Hong Kong, to capture this comet with his own equipment.
  

• 
  The AAS and Radio Hong Kong cooperated again to present broadcast program “Cosmic
  

• 
  The HKSM and AAS jointly published the book “Comet”.
  

1986

• 
  The Hong Kong Post Office designed a set of stamps to celebrate the 1986 return of Comet Halley.
  
• 
  Wong Hin-fan, the president of the SOA, published the book “Introduction to Astrophotography”, the first of this kind in Hong Kong.
  

• 
  The AAS organized “Astronomical Leadership Training” course. It aimed on management and astronomical skills required by a leader in organizing stargazing activities.
  

1987

• 
  The SOA and the HKSM jointly organized the “Astronomical Observations Award
  

• 
  The AAS hosted the “1987 Symposium on Recent Researches in Hong Kong”. About 100
  

were published in 1989. Similar proceedings were published in 1992 to 1997. ⁽³⁾

• 
  Hong Kong amateurs imaged solar prominences successfully during the September 1987